Teddy Bears
by vikwhis13
Summary: James and Carlos are considered the "teddy bears" of Big Time Rush. No one but the four of them would ever understand how they got that way. For Jarlos Bromance Day...
1. Chapter 1

**Okay, well this is for Jarlos bromance day today =) I'm probably putting this up a little late but I've been busy all day. Sorry if it's bad. I didn't bother to read over it...**

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><p>"Carlos, move over a little," James demanded one evening. It had been an incredibly busy day at their signing. After almost 150,000 screaming fans, having to sign over 50,000 CDs, and some girl's unmentionables, all James wanted to do was sit down in his favorite spot on the couch and watch some TV. Sadly that spot was covered up by Carlos' entire body.<p>

"No," Carlos murmured tiredly. He was also been worn out from the signing. Moving was the last thing he wanted to do. "Go sit on the other side,"

"That side is always cold though, and you can't see the TV as well. Just sit up so I can sit in my spot." James demanded. Carlos mumbled something incoherent and turned away. "Okay," James sighed. "I didn't want to have to do this but you asked for it,"

Suddenly Carlos felt himself an arm wrapping around his chest and another around his legs. He found himself upside down over James' shoulders. "No!" Carlos murmured a little louder. To no avail… James had already settled down in his spot with Carlos positioned in his lap.

"Great, now I can finally relax," James smiled. He reached for the remote sitting on the coffee table and started to look through what was in the DVR.

"I wanna lie down…" Carlos mumbled as he let his head lull lazily on James' shoulder.

"I thought you liked my lap?" James said, puzzled.

"Yeah, I'm gonna stay here," Carlos got more comfortable in James' lap. Soon he was dead weight in James' arms.

It really wasn't much of a secret at all the James liked to let Carlos sit in his lap from time to time. Sometimes it was for Carlos' comfort, sometimes just for the heck of it, and occasionally for James' comfort. It seemed pretty normal for the two. They were loveable guys. It didn't bother them to show some affection towards each other just because they weren't girls.

Kendall and Logan liked to call them the teddy bears of their group. James and Carlos pretended the name bugged them, but it really didn't. Kendall and Logan didn't even mean anything by it anyway. They knew how the two got like that in the first place. They were both going through tough times when it all started a couple years before they left for L.A.

They were sophomores in high school when things started to go wrong. Back then Carlos and James never really cared much for each other. It was pretty clear in all their heads. It was the first week of school when they were supposed to be settling into the new school year, getting used to the class schedules, being forced to become acquainted with the new kids, meeting the new teachers, etc., but none of them were interested. After going to the same school for 10 years they didn't need all the tedious introductions.

"Hey Carlos, are you coming down to the lot later?" Kendall said when the four were getting closer to the Garcia house on their walk home from school. The four of them liked to hang out together in a vacant lot at the corner of their neighborhood. Some other kids from their school hung out there too. It was a good place to get away from family and forget troubles, especially at night when the stars showed up.

"Yeah, I'll probably meet you guys over there after homework. You know how my parents get." Carlos assured Kendall. The boy started to run up his driveway with that his backpack bouncing on his back. "Bye guys!" he called before going into his house. The other three boys said their good-byes too then Carlos disappeared into his house.

Carlos did what he usually did after school. His shoes were kicked off and the backpack full of books was tossed on the floor. An after school snack was also in order on his daily routine. His roaring stomach was practically _begging_ for a corndog.

"Carlos, come into the den for a minute," Mrs. Garcia called.

"Can I get a corndog first, please?" Carlos called desperately.

"Family meeting," His dad called. Carlos sighed and turned around. He went through the hall to their den. In his head Carlos was freaking out. Family meetings usually weren't very fun but there was the occasional awesome one. There was one family meeting when his parents told him about how the entire Garcia family was going on a cruise for a family reunion. So luckily not all family meetings were horrible.

Upon entering the den he saw his mom and dad sitting on the leather couch. Across the room, sitting in an arm chair, he saw his older brother Miguel.

"MIGUEL!" Carlos screamed from the top of his lungs. He charged towards Miguel and gave him a tight hug almost knocking him out of the chair. Miguel hadn't been home for almost a year. So far it was a darn good family meeting.

"Hey Carlos," Miguel laughed, returning the hug "You're getting bigger, pal,"

Carlos laughed and pulled away from Miguel. "So are you! All the training you're doing is making your muscles _huge_!"

"That's sort of why he's here," Mr. Garcia spoke up.

"Carlos, you know how your brother has been training for going overseas, right?" Mrs. Garcia asked. Carlos nodded slowly and suspiciously.

"Miguel's training is finished. He'll be going to Afghanistan soon." Mr. Garcia cut to the chase.

Carlos' smile fell and his stomach plummeted. Everyone was silent to give Carlos some time to let it sink in. They waited patiently for him to respond. The uneasy silence and his parents' eager faces made Carlos feel pressured to answer.

"How soon is 'soon'?" Carlos asked nervously.

"Tomorrow morning pal," Miguel said gently.

Suddenly Carlos stepped far back from Miguel. He starred at his brother with shock evident in his eyes. "No…" He croaked. He kept starring at his brother. Miguel looked back into Carlos' brown eyes sadly.

"I have to,"

"Please no," Carlos begged.

Miguel sighed and ran a hand through his brown hair. "Mom, Dad, can I talk to Carlos alone?" he asked quietly.

"Of course hunny," Mrs. Garcia said "I'll start dinner. You two come up when you're ready." With that Mr. and Mrs. Garcia left, leaving their two sons to talk.

The den was awkwardly silent. Miguel and Carlos starred at each other, only creating more tension. They were both trying to find the words to say. Finally Miguel spoke up. "Carlos, you know I have to. I'm doing this for you and our family, you know."

"I know, but I don't want you to go," Carlos said. His voice was raw and scratchy but he did his best to swallow the lump in his throat. The lump was starting to burn in the back of his throat.

"But remember when I told everyone I wanted to be in the army you all said you'd be okay with it? You seemed the most excited for me at the time."

"But I was twelve and wars looked really cool! But then we learned about all the World Wars and the Vietnam War and the Korean War in school and I learned that people _die _in wars!" Carlos' voice sounding panicked.

Miguel tried not to laugh but could help but crack a smile. "What did you think people did with their guns, 'Los?"

"I thought it was just a myth or something!" Carlos yelled. Then he realized that Miguel was smiling. "_It's not funny!_ I'm scared you'll die!" tears were starting to fall down Carlos' hot, red face.

Miguel stopped smiling and sighed sadly. "Come here little bro," he opened his arms out for a hug. Carlos willingly accepted the hug and wrapped his arms around Miguel. Soon Carlos' entire body was shaking in Miguel's embrace. "I'll be okay in Afghanistan" he tried to assure Carlos. The youngest just kept crying, finding no comfort in Miguel's words. Miguel finally decided to pull away to look into Carlos' eyes again. He looked at him sternly but still showed some compassion. "I'm going to be okay, you have to trust me. God's going to have my back the whole time I'm out there. I'll write to you guys and I'll be home for Christmas every year. I'm going to be helping people, just like Dad. It's just a little more extreme. Freedom isn't free, pal,"

Carlos managed to pull himself together just enough to murmur "I know," a hiccup escaped his lips and he rubbed at his wet eyes.

Miguel stood from his chair and put his hand on Carlos' back. "I smell dinner, let's go eat," he said. Carlos nodded his head and they headed to the kitchen where their parents were.

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><p>The next morning Carlos was woken up early to say bye to Miguel before he took off. He went down there with his parents and Miguel. Some of Miguel's close friends came to say good-bye too. Carlos was holding on to every second he had left with his brother. He was the last one to hug Miguel good-bye. By then his tears were falling freely. Scared he'd never see Miguel alive again he hugged him tight and buried his face in Miguel's chest. The green uniform Miguel was wearing was rough and uncomfortable but Carlos didn't care.<p>

"There's no need to cry for me, Carlos. I'm going to be okay." Miguel assured Carlos one more time after pulling away from the hug. Carlos managed to nod a little then wiped his face.

All the leaving soldiers were called to board the plane a few minutes later. Carlos watched from behind a fence a good 100 feet away. He wanted to shout good-bye but his voice was too sore to be heard over the plane's roaring engine. When the plane took off Mr. Garcia put a hand on Carlos' shoulder and tried to smile for him. He led his son to their car and took Carlos and his wife back home. It was only 7:30 in the morning but Carlos didn't feel like going to school. He just wanted to go back home and lock himself up in his room forever.

Mr. and Mrs. Garcia didn't force him to go to school. They didn't think he was in any condition to go anyway. Carlos put on some sweats and his hockey jersey first thing he did after they got home. Most of the day he sulked in his room without even bothering to answer any texts from his friends. For nine hours he refused to eat anything or leave his bed. Finally after 5:00 Mrs. Garcia decided Carlos need to get outside for a while, helmet and all. She sent him out the door to get some sun for at least an hour.

First thing Carlos thought to do was go down to the lot. There was a corner where the sun hit a soft patch of green grass that was nice for being alone. Carlos sat in that corner by himself for a while until Kendall, Logan and James found him sitting there on his own. They ran to him to see what was going on with him.

"Carlitos!" Kendall called as he ran over. Carlos looked up from the piece of grass he was fiddling with when he heard Kendall yell his name. "Carlos!" Kendall yelled again. He sat down in the grass with Carlos and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "Where were you at school today? We didn't see you."

"'Cause I didn't go," Carlos said quietly.

"Are you feeling alright?" Logan asked, observing his friend's face.

"No, I just didn't feel like it," Carlos said somberly.

"Well you missed some big news," Kendall said "James' parents are getting divorced soon. So we're going to stick by his side the whole time. I know you and James don't really get along but hopefully you'll be there for him too."

Carlos only shrugged in response. He looked up at James, who was avoiding eye contact and keeping to himself. "I'm sorry to hear about your parents," Carlos said half-heartedly "I guess if it makes you feel better my brother just went to serve in Afghanistan so you're not alone," Suddenly Logan and Kendall gasped and turned all their attention to Carlos.

"Your brother left today?" Logan exclaimed.

"Is that why you weren't at school today?" Kendall asked.

"Yeah, mostly," Carlos said quietly.

Kendall got to his feet and hauled Carlos up with him. "Come on, let's go to my house. My mom can make us hot chocolate and we can hang out. It'll make you feel better." He started to lead them all to his house down the street.

Logan and Kendall stuck by Carlos' side, trying to talk to him about his brother, while James lagged behind. He hated how whenever Carlos had problems Kendall and Logan would drop everything and focus all their attention on their baby. James despised Carlos since he out preformed him the first day of peewee hockey. The only reason he'd put up with him was because Kendall and Logan made him. He'd much rather go with it than fight it. He was close to his breaking point though. After 10 years of putting up with Carlos always stealing his spot light he was about ready to punch Carlos' head in.

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><p><strong>AN: Well… that hurt. That hurt a lot. 2****nd**** part coming soon! READ ON MY FRIENDS! -**


	2. Chapter 2

Once they got to the Knight house Kendall had his mom make them hot chocolates then took them upstairs to his room. Carlos was settled on Kendall's bed next to Logan while Kendall went out to get the hot chocolate. James sat across the room at Kendall's desk, completely keeping to himself. He didn't care to hear about Carlos' problems.

"So what else?" Logan asked curiously as he put a blanket around Carlos' shoulders.

"I dunno…" Carlos said with a scratchy voice "I'm just really scared that Miguel will die or won't be able to function right when he gets back. I don't want him to be gone so far away. I hate it."

"We'll be here for you, I promise," Logan assured him. Carlos huddled close to Logan and rested his head on his shoulder for comfort.

Finally Kendall came back with four hot chocolates. He handed one each to Logan and Carlos, then one to James. "Dude, why don't you want to sit on the bed with us?" Kendall asked James.

James just looked up at Kendall with a disgusted look on his face. "You know I can't stand Carlos," he said coldly.

"Why though? I'm sure you guys would get along if you'd just give the guy a chance."

"No, I have enough on my plate with my parents' divorce. If I make friends with him then he's going to be going on and on about his problems. I don't want to comfort him about his when I have my own to worry about." James said coldly.

"Can't you at least try?" Kendall asked.

"No! I have my own problems, Kendall!" James exclaimed.

Carlos heard what James was saying and decided to speak up. "You're not the center of the world James!" he cried.

"Well neither are you! You're always the one getting attention for nothing!" James yelled.

"My brother is in Afghanistan! What if he dies? What if my big brother _dies _saving our butts! Our freedom isn't free!"

"Oh yeah, well what's going to happen to my family after my parents split? I don't even know if I'll see Kendall or Logan again because my dad's going to move to Nevada after it's official! If my dad gets custody of me I'll never see them again! Try thinking about that instead of yourself!"

"Alright stop!" Kendall suddenly shouted, putting an immediate stop to the fight. All eyes were on Kendall. "Look, you two fighting isn't going to help anything. We've been a group since forever and I think it's about time you two get it together _now _and on your own_. _Logan and I are going to leave you two alone to figure this out so neither of you is the "center of attention". When we come back you two better be friends." He grabbed hold of Logan's arm and dragged him out of the room. Logan was protesting against the idea but was ignored. After the door closed Carlos and James were left alone, starring each other with hatred.

Carlos was the first to break the silence. "Why do you hate me?"

"Because you're annoying. That "sweet and innocent" act you always put on for attention is stupid. Before you were all cutesy and sad at the lot earlier Kendall and Logan was actually making me feel better!"

"I didn't even mean to!" Carlos cut in "My problems are just as bad as yours!"

"How can it be as bad as a divorce? I don't even know how they could get divorced now! It's too confusing! I… I feel like it's my fault this is happening! Try living with that on your mind!"

"I have stuff to worry about too!" Carlos cried, tears were starting to run down his face "I'm scared my brother will die and I'll never see him again! He was the only one who could make me really feel better in these situations but now he's gone!"

James scoffed. "You're so needy,"

"Well, so are you!" Carlos screamed. There was another uneasy silence. They avoided eye contact, only making it more awkward. "I-I'm sor-rry…" Carlos hiccupped softly "I'm too confused. I-I hate… I h-hate this," finally he broke down completely.

James tried to ignore him but Carlos bawled too hard. The more James listened, the more he realized that it wasn't an act at all. He'd heard fake crying in drama class all the time but Carlos' crying was from genuine sadness. It made James feel guilty about yelling.

He scanned the room for a box of tissues or something to give Carlos to wipe his gross face. There was a box by the edge of Kendall's bed. James grabbed a couple and handed them over to Carlos.

"Here," he said quietly "You're getting all gross…"

Carlos hesitantly took them and wiped away all the tears from his face. "Th-thanks,"

"Yeah… and I'm sorry too," James hesitantly said "I guess I'm being ridiculous. I'm sorry for making you cry."

"Wanna hug it out?" Carlos asked as he held out his arms.

James shook his head. "I don't hug,"

Carlos got closer anyway. "It helps though," without even bothering to get permission from James he wrapped his arms around James' neck. It stunned James for a minute. It was strange hating him for one minute then being hugged by him the next. James accepted the hug nonetheless. It felt good, like all the hate there before was gone.

"So… are we friends now?" James asked nervously.

"I want to be your friend," Carlos said innocently.

James smiled and embraced Carlos tighter "Then I guess that's a yes,"

Carlos released himself from James hesitantly. He went back to where he was before and wrapped the blanket around his body again. "Yay, we're done fighting," he smiled.

"I guess so…" They sat there in a much less uncomfortable silence. "Want to sit in my lap?" James randomly asked.

"What?"

"Do you want to sit in my lap? It comforts me when I have something to hold in my lap. I used to do it with my dog, but my dad took him when he moved out. I figure you'd like to anyway." James said.

"But what if I break you… I'm a hundred and thirteen pounds," Carlos said nervously.

"I can bench one-fifty at the gym. You'd be no problem."

Carlos smiled and crawled into James' lap on the other side of the bed. "Thanks James," he said. He attempted to wrap the blanket around their bodies. "If you want to talk about your parents' divorce, I'll try to help,"

"Sure, thanks buddy," James said.

James started to explain his parents' situation. Carlos listened for as long as he could. Soon the conversation was about Miguel leaving for Afghanistan. James listened just like Carlos did. They talked and cried together for two hours before they fell asleep.

Kendall and Logan came back to the room far past sun down. They were pleasantly surprised to see James and Carlos had finally become friends. Kendall was sure to take pictures of them to rub in their faces when they woke up. Neither Logan or Kendall bothered to wake them up. A last minute sleepover was just arranged. They wanted to be the first ones to hear about what happened in the morning.

Since then James and Carlos got closer. Their foursome finally became whole after 11 years. There was no jealousy or bad blood at all and there was never another fight between Carlos and James. It became their thing to comfort each other when the other was down, or more than down. They got cuddly and brotherly together, like teddy bears. It was sweet. Some would say too sweet but they would never understand. Only the four of them would ever understand it. Their teddy bears were perfect.

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><p><strong>AN: Yeah, crappy, I know… I've have writer's block and it's killing me. Just enjoy the idea of the story =) if you focus on the idea then it's better. Also keep in mind, homework has been dumped on me like crazy lately plus friend drama so I haven't been in a very good position to write anything good lately. I'll get over it eventually… no worries…**


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